GEOFF BOYCOTT says, historically, Trent Bridge is a result pitch, but Boycs is so old that when he was at school they didn’t teach history – there wasn’t any.

With the draw ­statistically unlikely, bookies say they have seen a lot of money for England to win the Second Test.

Lucky them. I don’t see any sort of money.

The trouble is, England are as short as 10-11 and that’s known in the trade as an Ian Bell bet – just too short to be taken seriously.

India traditionally improve by a stone after the First Test of a series – Zaheer Khan increases by the same amount – and something keeps telling me the ­tourists, at 7-2, are worth a dabble. I worry, however, that the “something” is my bookie.

It might be safer all round to play on the man-of-the-match market.

No one has a better record in Nottingham than Jimmy Anderson (below) – not even Robin Hood – and, after his heroics at Lord’s, it’s a surprise to see he can still be backed at 12-1.

Sachin Tendulkar is still searching for his 100th international hundred – you’d think by now he’d have remembered where he left it – and Hills offer 3-1 for the Little Master to reach his milestone at Trent Bridge.

He’s 7-5 with Paddy Power to still be stuck on 99, come the end of the series. Khan is considerably shorter to be scoffing 99s.